For many professionals, email is the single most important tool in their day to day lives. As a result, for many, it's important to know how to use email effectively and courteously in order to advance in their careers. Of course, writing great emails in English is even more difficult when English is your second or third language! So, here are some tips to help you get started!

First, let's take a look at an informal and a formal email- then we'll break them down!

Informal Email:

Formal Email:

Part 1: Greetings!

Your greeting sets the tone for your email! Do you want to be 'fun and friendly'? How about 'seriouss and respectful'? Well, there's deferent approaches we can take for both!:

Part 2: Openers!

The opener to your email also helps you set the tone for your note. You can use it to "break the ice," remind the recipient who you are, or show interest in their life! Here are a few options:

Part 3: The Transition!

After your opener, you may want to transition to the topic you want to discuss. Transitions are helpful, because they prevent your email from feeling too rushed and impolite:

Part 4: Closings!

After you've brought up the reason you are emailing, you'll want to close with a small request or question that asks the recipient to get back to you and let you know what they think. Here are some options!:

Part 5: The Sign-off!

Finally, you'll want to 'sign-off' with the signature line. This is another area where you can choose the tone you'd lke to convey. Some common options are below:

And, that's all for this Pro Tips blog! Hopefully you'll now have some nice informal and formal expressions to use in your emails that will help you write effective and persuasive emails in English!